Opening statement..."I'm glad to be back and playing a game this week. It was hard not playing last week, especially since we're into the season a little bit. We wanted to get back in the game as quickly as possible. We survived last week, had a good spirited workout yesterday and our guys are fired up and ready to go. It's going to be a good week. It's the first of an eight week stretch, which starts this week against TCU."

On TCU being a conference game..."I'm happy about them being a conference opponent because I think TCU and West Virginia coming to the conference has really stabilized and elevated the conference as a whole, because they're two extremely recognized football programs. I know Baylor and TCU played for a while in the Southwest Conference, but getting them in the Big 12 is certainly a big deal for our conference."

On the difference between two bye weeks..."The first week was a little bit different because we played on a Sunday night, so we had one less day to prepare, whereas this time we played on a Saturday morning, so we had a regular Sunday. The West Virginia game is over with. It's done. We're not going to spend time worrying about it. We know what we need to improve on, we know where we need to go, and we know what we need to do to get there. Now, it's our job to go do it."

On the off week improving team health..."I think it will help us get back a couple players, one that didn't finish the game and the other that missed the game, so, from that standpoint, there's no doubt it helped. The thing about an off week is that your timing and tempo tend to slow down, so we're going to make an effort to get in the game quickly on Saturday and avoid any lag from the off week."

On how TCU's quarterback situation affects preparation..."We try to focus on ourselves. We have jobs to do on both sides of the ball and special teams. We focus on our assignments, details, personnel, and philosophy. After that, we adjust to whatever happens on the other side of the ball. The game is all about adjustments. That's what makes it so great."

On his impression of TCU quarterback Trevone Boykin..."I think he's a good player. He was a good player coming out of high school. He's a great leader who demands a lot of respect. I was around him at a camp we had and was impressed with him as an individual and as a player."

On injury status of Ahmad Dixon, Mike Hicks, & Demetri Goodson..."Ahmad and Mike will both play this weekend. We might try to get an extra year out of Demetri, so he will probably not play again this year."

On a set routine for the weeks to come..."I think it will be good. We've handled the ups and downs and the different schedules really well and now we're finally getting in a routine. It will be fun to get in a rhythm of things."

On the week off..."Any time you get a week off, it's a chance for guys to get healthy again, get back fresh, relax and take a little break. Then they're just excited to get back on the field. I think it works to our advantage and we need to use it to our advantage."

On being #1 in total offense..."We put up a lot of points against West Virginia, but we didn't win. We probably left more points on the table so there is definitely things we can work on as an offense and we'll continue to get better and work things out."

On last week's practice week..."We knew we had to go out and work hard and get better. That's what our goal was last week - to get better. It was a very productive week. We tried to make it as normal a week as possible. We were getting back to the basics."

On getting into the routine for the weeks ahead..."We're excited about it. These off weeks have made our schedule a little weird. We are definitely ready for it. We want to make a good push toward the bowl game."

On TCU being a conference game..."With TCU coming in the conference, we want to show them what the Big 12 plays like. We're going to be prepared."

On the game against TCU..."It's going to be fun. We're going to be ready to go. We had an off week last week so it wasn't as tough, but at the same time, preparation was still good. I'm just excited for these next eight weeks."

On TCU defense..."TCU is a very good football team. They have a few people that came back from last year's team and they are still a pretty good defensive team. Nothing's changed with their defense."

On Nick Florence... "I played with him my freshman year. Seeing bits and pieces as a true freshman is different with him now being a senior and having all the experience that he's had. Nick is playing great right now. He is being a great leader that we know he can be."